Faith guitars

xSkarloey · November 2016

Are these worth a try?

I am specifically thinking of the-ahem- Naked Venus (down boy), and the slope shouldered Mars models (the sunburst and the mahogany).

Cheers.

Sassafras · November 2016

Definitely.
I've been very impressed by those naked series ones.
If I was after a new acoustic I'd probably go for the smaller Mercury.
All solid wood for about £400.

xSkarloey · November 2016

@Sassafras I hadn't thought of that one.

Of the acoustics I've tried in my current guitar hunt, my favourite is the Taylor spruce topped GS Mini.

That sets the bar quite high. I'll add the Mercury to the 'try list' now.

richardhomer · November 2016

Skarloey said:

Are these worth a try?

Certainly if George Michael's to be believed.

He recommends nothing else for performing guitar work on.

stimpsonslostson · November 2016

I've got a Faith Naked Mercury. Simply put, it's wonderful.

They've cut costs where they can (the finish, binding, decoration), but spent it where it counts (solid woods, good tuners etc)
It's a perfect sofa guitar: Small, comfortable, great sounding and easy to play.

The finish IS ridiculously thin though, so it marks SUPER easily- you'll be acquiring accidental pick marks etc in no time. As such I'd be reluctant to take it out of the house much. Don't get me wrong, it's really well put together and completely solid feeling, but it shows superficial wear really easily.
The thin finish does have the advantage that the guitar is amazing to play- it feels alive. Every note vibrates through your rib cage in a way I'd never experienced before. It responds well to playing dynamics too, again I suspect this is related to the ability of the top to move.

They CAN be very anaemic too- almost white in colour. Mine has now started to darken to a light honey colour which is really rather pleasant.

Overall I can't speak highly enough of it- I got mine second hand for a great price. Having had a series of "budget" acoustics I couldn't believe the step up in quality to this despite it being at the lower end of the Faith range.

xSkarloey · November 2016

@stimpsonslostson Interesting info. Thanks.

Whatever I buy will get played put of the house at Open Mics, other meet ups etc. If I buy one and it gets marked then for me that's by the by, so thanks for the advice. Takamine used to (still do?) do cedar topped guitars with a thin finish and no scratchplate. I've seen them worn through like Willie Nelson's Trigger!

ennspek · November 2016

The Faith stuff is brilliant in my opinion. They sound fantastic and are excellent value wherever in the range you look.

Babyfrank · November 2016

I have a Naked Venus which I'm very pleased with... excellent bang for the buck in terms of quality, and acoustically sounds great. The Shadow Nano-flex pickup is really natural... seems a lot less "quacky" than other piezo's I've tried, and with a spot of compression and reverb sounds excellent through our PA with the guitar EQ on flat. I tried the full range - I initially was looking at the Hi-Gloss models, but found the Naked versions sounded better (to me)... a lot more "woody" than their more expensive siblings. Would buy another in a heartbeat.

xSkarloey · November 2016

Thanks @babyfrank. Really thoughtful post. I think I need to put it on the to try list.

I have an 'unscratched itch', never having got a Takamine Nex shaped guitar when they were more common a decade ago. I get the feeling the Faith is in the same sort of vein as the Tak.

bentdick · December 2016

There's a nice looking Naked Mercury on Gumtree at the moment (https://www.gumtree.com/p/guitar-instrument/faith-naked-mercury/1204632972).

Exorcist · December 2016

Very happy Faith owner here. I think mine is a Naked Saturn?

ThorpyFX · December 2016

I have owned a eclipse Saturn which i really liked, but it was too big for me as an occasional acoustic player.....

So i just received a Faith Hi gloss Mercury (this one actually.....

https://www.faithguitars.com/guitars/by-shape/mercury/product/137-fmehg-bnc-mercury-parlour-electro)

truthfully this is perfect for me, platys very easily, sounds much bigger than its size, looks phenomenal. comes in a case and because of its size, ill pay it more. very much recommended

RandallFlagg · December 2016

Looks good

MagicPigDetective · January 2017

Played my guitar teachers Faith Saturn tonight; beautiful guitar and so easy to play.

My Tanglewood's neck is bent beyond redemption and horrible to play. I've been thinking about a Taylor but will now be giving Faith serious consideration.

MagicPigDetective · January 2017

I really do fancy a Faith; they have a hell of a lot of shapes and finishes to choose from. My problem is that I dont live anywhere near a shop that stocks them.

The Venus Blood Moon looks beautiful, anybody played one?

https://www.faithguitars.com/guitars/by-series/blood-moon-series/product/183-fvbmb-venus-cut-electro

Spandex · February 2017

I've had a Bloodmoon for about 6 months now. Went in the store to check out the naked range, and I think I played the naked Venus, naked Neptune as well as the highgloss Venus then I spotted the Bloodmoon amongst the Martins and Breedloves and Riversongs. Even trying some of the higher end guitars, the Bloodmoon just seemed to do it for me and I would have paid more if I'd found one better (not much more though, I blew twice my budget on this one).

It plays and sounds as good as it looks, it really is a bit special. To play, it needed no setup and needs no effort, it was one of the those guitars that just felt right.The Shadow electrics are good with an undersaddle pup, really easy to get a good crisp sound that's quite close to the natural sound. And about the sound, it has the bite of a spruce with the warmth of mahogany, really full and it projects it well. One other outstanding thing is the tuners, the grovers are so precise, smooth and effortless it makes open tuning a pleasure

I treated this guitar to a tonewood amp, and it's fantastic with it. I play it most days, and each time it still feels special.

Disclaimer : Most of my acoustics are not even close to this as I'm fundamentally cheap, and go for 2nd hand good players regardless of make so with this one I really treated myself. So this review maybe just infatuation. Ask me again on our first anniversary.

TheMarlin · February 2017

My cousin has a Faith. Great acoustic!

AliGorie · February 2017

a friend has smallish 00 ? sized model, he got it for playing at a local open mic and plugged in it sounds pretty good - unplugged it's that generic bright 'small' sound - lacking in character - but they're very competitively priced.
If you dont play plugged in get a second hand eastman, more a players guitar.
BTW, I'm coming at this as a solo fingerpicker and have a couple of good 'small shop' guitars - so as you can understand my opinion.

Spandex · February 2017

MagicPigDetective said:

I really do fancy a Faith; they have a hell of a lot of shapes and finishes to choose from. My problem is that I dont live anywhere near a shop that stocks them.

The Venus Blood Moon looks beautiful, anybody played one?

https://www.faithguitars.com/guitars/by-series/blood-moon-series/product/183-fvbmb-venus-cut-electro

Yes, I treated myself to one a while back and after 6 months of never putting it down I can say it sounds way better than it looks, and it looks gorgeous. The Trembesi wood gives a lovely warm bass but with a zingy top end, kind of like spruce body but with the roundness of mahoghany. To play, it's really natural and fluid, no effort and tireless and didn't need a setup. The pickups / electrics required no faff to get a great sound. The hardware is real quality, the machineheads are smooth and solid and are very easy to finely adjust. I've added a Tonewood Amp and it's an outstanding combination. The case is great too, very snug and complete with a humidor.

I went in to our local shop with a view to try and buy a naked Venus but walked away with the Bloodmoon. After trying the Naked Venus, the Highgloss Venus, a Mercury and a Saturn, I'd say the difference was night and day. Well worth the extra cash for this beauty.

Spandex · February 2017

MagicPigDetective said:

I really do fancy a Faith; they have a hell of a lot of shapes and finishes to choose from. My problem is that I dont live anywhere near a shop that stocks them.

The Venus Blood Moon looks beautiful, anybody played one?

https://www.faithguitars.com/guitars/by-series/blood-moon-series/product/183-fvbmb-venus-cut-electro

Yes, I treated myself to one a while back and after 6 months of never putting it down I can say it sounds way better than it looks, and it looks gorgeous. The Trembesi wood gives a lovely warm bass but with a zingy top end, kind of like spruce body but with the roundness of mahoghany. To play, it's really natural and fluid, no effort and tireless and didn't need a setup. The pickups / electrics required no faff to get a great sound. The hardware is real quality, the machineheads are smooth and solid and are very easy to finely adjust. I've added a Tonewood Amp and it's an outstanding combination. The case is great too, very snug and complete with a humidor.

I went in to our local shop with a view to try and buy a naked Venus but walked away with the Bloodmoon. After trying the Naked Venus, the Highgloss Venus, a Mercury and a Saturn, I'd say the difference was night and day. Well worth the extra cash for this beauty.

MagicPigDetective · February 2017

Sounds like a great guitar @Spandex any photos? Which shop was it?

simonk · February 2017

I really liked my Faith (can't remember the model now), as an acoustic it was excellent for the money. My only reservation was the electrics, the Shadow system let it down a bit I felt.

sawyer · February 2017

Love my gloss Venus. Action a bit high so gonna take a bit off bottom of saddle when I next change strings. Gorgeous things though.

blobb · February 2017

My partner, who is a professional folk singer, uses a Faith guitar. So good folk instruments. To be honest, it beats a snazzier Takamine hands down for playability. Also sent a Tanglewood packing. Gets better as it gets older too. If any of that helps. Think it's an older Venus type, looking at the website.

MagicPigDetective · February 2017

Visited James music in Carmarthen yesterday. Tried a venus naked and high gloss. The high gloss was brighter, but the naked had an earthy woodness that I preferred; it played beautifully. Tried a mercury too and a little martin: dont think the little parlour types are for me.

MagicPigDetective · March 2017

Finally a proper video review of the Venus Blood Moon.

notonlybutalso · April 2017

I have a mercury hi gloss and its excellent. I tried it against the naked series and the Taylor gs mini and it was the clear winner, even just against the naked series mercury the sound was way more focused, the hi gloss finish keeping the body resonance down and to me it seemed like less of the sound was "leaking" out around the joins for lack of a better term

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